Voices added to the chorus calling for more options

One broker’s lament about lack of options for second mortgages has created a stir among the community

Brokers are echoing the argument that the industry needs more second mortgage options for prime clients.

“I do run into A+ clients requiring - or more accurately - wanting a second mortgage. These are prime, sophisticated clients and the request is to leverage their equity as an investment tool,” MortgageBrokerNews.ca reader, Kristin Woolard of Dominion Lending Centres wrote in the forum. “More often than not I set them up with a HELOC with a credit union and they invest and pay off as needed. More selection of standalone second mortgages would be beneficial.”

The conversation was sparked by Steve Gilmour, a broker with Dominion Lending Centres Alliance, who told MortgageBrokerNews.ca that clients who require a second mortgage often have to turn to the private segment and face high interest rates and argues high qualified clients are being let down by lenders.

And he called for more options for those clients with good credit.

It’s an opinion shared by many in the industry, it seems.

“People with good credit and income can also require money for good reasons and should not have to pay the high rates of the private mortgages or bear the expense of refinancing their entire first mortgage,” Ad Lakhanpal, a broker with Mortgage Alliance wrote on MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “If a person can qualify to a refinance of their mortgage to 80% LTV with an A-lender, I see no reason why he should not be allowed to have a first and second combo as long as he qualifies.”